Echoes
by Egon-Starcollector
Summary: Harry and Hermione's marriage has fallen apart. Is it really over, or is love stronger than anger?
1. I Always Liked That Best

I Always Liked That Best  
  
--by Egon Starcollector  
  
Disclaimer: Harry Potter, Hermione Granger (Potter), Severus Snape, etc. are the property of JK Rowling. Lyrics to "I Always Liked That Best" are the property of Cyndi Thompson. I only own the plot and the mental layout of Harry and Hermione's house and land. ;)  
  
Rating: PG-13 just to be on the safe side.  
  
Hermione Potter woke up with a migraine--one of the downsides to having Muggle blood. She was grateful that she knew the layout of the house well enough to get around without having to see. She felt her way to the kitchen and stirred up a potion that looked and tasted like lemonade. *Professor Snape's never-fail headache cure,* she smiled to herself.  
  
After she drank the potion, she stumbled into the living room and stretched out on the couch. Within half an hour the throbbing in her head ceased so she could bear to open her eyes. She went back to the kitchen and made breakfast. She had her coffee and oatmeal while she sat at the kitchen table looking out the window. It looked like it was going to be a lovely Saturday. Perhaps she'd take a walk. After she showered and dressed, that was exactly what she did. She'd intended to walk on the moor, but instead her feet took her to the pond that sat at the edge of her property and at the base of the moor. She always seemed to come back to the pond. She sat on the grass and gazed at the ripples on the soft surface...she almost expected to see Harry come up behind her.  
  
Where do I start  
  
Lying on a blanket underneath the stars  
  
With your head on my chest  
  
I always liked that best  
  
They'd bought the house because it was situated so dramatically below the moor. The pond had been a surprise, but it had quickly become one of their favorite places. They'd picnicked on the bank on crisp autumn days, skated on the ice during winter break, and made love on the grass under the stars on cool summer nights. The pond always made her think of Harry.  
  
Some nights they'd lay in each other's arms afterwards and talk about the future. "Look at that...no way will our kids be big-headed growing up in the shadow of the moor," Harry had said with a laugh.  
  
"Or under all these stars...wizards or not, they'll see how small they are," she'd said.  
  
"Look, there's a shooting star!"  
  
I hate how times flies  
  
I still think back sometimes  
  
'Bout your lips on my neck  
  
I always liked that best  
  
Back inside the house, she took down a picture from the fireplace mantel. It was their wedding picture...they were laughing and waving and kissing each other. It had truly seemed like a new beginning: they'd graduated from Hogwarts, Harry had defeated Voldemort once and for all...what could go wrong now?  
  
"Oh, if I'd only known..." she sighed. It had been what, two years now? No, a little more. Over two years since he'd come up behind her, pulled her hair aside, and kissed that sensitive spot on her neck....since he'd held her while they slept.... Over two years since that stupid fight, when Harry walked out.... Over two years since she'd seen or heard from him.  
  
That time we took a ride  
  
Ended up down by the river side  
  
Soft touch wet kiss  
  
I always liked that best  
  
She studied the background of the picture. They'd held their wedding on the green at Hogwarts. She could see the school's Great Hall in the background. She liked to think about their school days...but it hurt, too, since Hogwarts made her think of Harry. They'd met on the Hogwarts Express, fallen in love between classes and fighting monsters.... There was that time near the end of fifth year when she'd heard a tapping on her window in the middle of the night. It was Harry with his broom. "Care for a flight?" Against her better judgement, she'd gotten dressed and gone with him. They'd ended up touching down on a riverbank, gazing at the stars. That was the night Harry first told her he loved her.  
  
I like the way you used to hold me  
  
I like the way you came to know me  
  
You came to know me well well well  
  
What had gone wrong? She and Harry had been best friends since they were eleven. She'd always felt they were soulmates...they told each other *everything.* He knew how much she liked teaching at Hogwarts, and since her position as Associate Professor of Herbology had been tenuous at best when she'd started--well, of course she worked hard! She didn't want to lose her job! Yes, she was ambitious; he said that was one of the things he loved about her.  
  
But why hadn't he even called when he went out with the team to celebrate Hogwarts' victory in the Quidditch Nationals? She was upset that he spent so much time with the team...but it upset her more not knowing where he was.  
  
Falling to sleep  
  
Wearing your shirt 'cause it smelled so sweet  
  
Who could forget  
  
I always liked that best  
  
*Come on, stop moping. You've got work to do,* she told herself. She threw in a load of laundry--including one of Harry's old shirts which she wore as a nightshirt because she swore it still smelled like him. She remembered how upset he'd been when he fell off his broom and tore it. "Now Harry, there's no reason to send it to the ragman. Look, I can mend the front and then I'll use it to sleep in. I need a new nightshirt, you know." He'd been quite skeptical--until he actually saw her wearing it. The gleam in his eyes said everything....  
  
Or losing my heart every time you sang to me on your guitar  
  
"Lady in Red"  
  
I always liked that best  
  
When the clothes were dry, she folded everything but the shirt. She picked it up and pressed it to her cheek. Harry...it *still* smelled like him, no matter how often she washed it. A tear slid down her cheek as she hugged the shirt. She hung it in the closet...right next to his guitar. His guitar. He'd taken lessons from a fellow student at Hogwarts. He had a pleasant tenor voice, so he liked to serenade Hermione when they were dating and when they first got married. His favorite song to sing was a Muggle song about a woman in a red dress. He said it made him think of her because of the red in her Gryffindor robes. It was a pretty song...but she loved to hear it just because she loved Harry.  
  
I like the way you used to hold me  
  
I like the way you came to know me  
  
You came to know me well well well  
  
She supposed that was why she loved that shirt. When she slept in it, she could dream he was holding her again.  
  
  
  
I could go on  
  
So many things I miss now that you're gone  
  
Your love oh yes  
  
I always liked that best  
  
Hermione missed having Harry's arms around her. She missed his groggy face at the breakfast table. She missed...everything.  
  
Harry.... She no longer cared how often he was with the Quidditch team or even whether she worked quite as hard. She didn't care whose fault the fight was. She just wanted Harry to come home. 


	2. In Another World

In Another World  
  
--by Egon Starcollector  
  
Disclaimer: I only own the plot and the characters of Martin "Mac" Ledbetter, Anne Ledbetter, Maggie Dunkirk, and Mudie. Harry Potter, Hogwarts, and Hermione Granger (Potter) are the property of J.K. Rowling. Lyrics to "In Another World" copywright Joe Diffie. Darrowby is the property of James Herriot. ;)  
  
A/N: I figured we needed Harry's P.O.V. Ain't I a stinker? ;)  
  
Harry walked along the road, his thumb stuck out in the Muggle sign for "I need a ride." Hitchhiking, they called it. Lord, it was hot...there'd been an uncharacteristic drought all summer, so the English countryside was starting to look more like the Sahara.  
  
Thumb stuck high in the air,  
  
Destination anywhere  
  
This road decides to go  
  
Underneath the desert sky,  
  
I find a place to hide  
  
And rest my weary bones  
  
It was early afternoon, so Harry crawled under a bridge to nap away the day's heat. It was shady, and comfortable even though there was very little water left in the stream (*So much for cooling breezes,* he thought). He was very sore...just yesterday he'd finished a job in Edinburgh assisting a Muggle who was installing carpet. It might have seemed rather beneath Harry's education and social standing, but he'd needed money. Besides, after all those years with the Durseleys Harry was anything but a snob.  
  
This underpass will shade the heat  
  
And as my mind drifts off to sleep....  
  
He soon dozed...and had the same dream he always had. Hermione....  
  
There you are with your hair all down  
  
And your feet are bare in your cotton gown  
  
What a beautiful sight  
  
In the moonlight  
  
The way you're lookin' at me with your loving eyes  
  
You're letting me know that for all my life  
  
You will always be my only girl  
  
But that's another place and time  
  
Back when you were mine  
  
In another world  
  
But Hermione--and their marriage--had belonged to Hogwarts and a younger Harry. Younger, he thought, and perhaps wiser. Now...he was just a drifter in the world of Muggles.  
  
A car stops way up ahead  
  
I climb inside, her hair is red  
  
I thank her for the ride  
  
Soon after Harry woke up and started walking again, a young woman in a blue sedan stopped and offered him a lift. *Grief, she almost looks like Ginny Weasley. Eyes are the wrong color, though.* "Thanks for the ride, Miss...?"  
  
"Maggie. Maggie Dunkirk. Where you headed?"  
  
He shrugged. "Wherever the road goes."  
  
She talks the miles away  
  
I nod and smile and try to say  
  
Anything to be polite  
  
Lord, Maggie Dunkirk was a talker! He'd never known anyone to talk for three hours straight without saying anything of import--well, except maybe Aunt Petunia. Fortunately, Harry had learned how to feign interest from seven years of Potions class.  
  
But as the darkness ends the day  
  
Another voice whispers my name....  
  
As night fell, Harry found himself nodding lightly. "Harry...." What? Hermione? He started slightly, realizing with a soft sigh that he must have been dreaming again.  
  
There you are with your hair all down  
  
And your feet are bare in your cotton gown  
  
What a beautiful sight  
  
In the moonlight  
  
It wouldn't be hard on a night like this...summer night, cool and gentle breeze.... He and Hermione had loved nights like this. She'd open the window in their bedroom to let in the breeze...she was so lovely, even in a simple gown. She'd come over to him, the moonlight falling softly on her face and love shining in her eyes.... Hermione....  
  
The way you're lookin' at me with your loving eyes  
  
You're letting me know that for all my life  
  
You will always be my only girl  
  
But that's another place and time  
  
Back when you were mine  
  
In another world  
  
He'd wanted her always to be his. Legally, she still was; that was one reason he'd never taken off his wedding ring. Besides...he just couldn't. Even if she never gave him a thought...she was ever on his mind. *'Mione, I never stopped loving you.* What madness had possessed him to leave?  
  
"Hey Harry, I'm afraid this is where you get off. I'll drop you at the pub, okay? Mac's a real nice guy, and his rooms are cheap."  
  
"All right. Thank you ever so much." Shelters...bridges...sometimes cheap rooms in pubs. All the places he'd slept the last two and a half years. They always felt cold, no matter how warm they really were...and he always dreamed of Hermione.  
  
He remembered a conversation he'd had with the Muggle who'd hired him as a carpetlayer. Mudie--that was all he'd ever known the genial Scot by-- had been boasting one day about his son's good marks at school. Then, he'd done something he rarely did: he asked Harry a question.  
  
"You're mighty tight-lipped about yourself, Potter. Haven't ye got a home to go to ever?"  
  
"Oh, I have a home. I just don't know if I'm welcome there anymore."  
  
Harry walked into the pub and saw a man with wavy, shoulder-length brown hair and a neat brown beard and mustache standing behind the bar. The man wore black jeans, a black shirt, and--from the sound of his steps-- what the American Muggles called "cowboy boots." "Um, are you Mac?"  
  
"At your service. What can I do for you, stranger?" the man said in a broad American accent.  
  
"Stranger? You're the American," Harry said with a gently teasing smile. He'd warmed up to the twinkle in the man's eyes and felt oddly comfortable joking with him.  
  
Mac shook his head. "I been here fifteen years, pal. I know everybody in this town--and I don't know you. So that makes you the stranger," he retorted with a grin.  
  
Harry smiled. He was thirsty...he decided to treat himself and have a Muggle drink he'd grown fond of. "I'll have a cola."  
  
"One Coke, comin' up." Mac put ice in a glass and filled it with the fizzy liquid, then set it before Harry and dropped a straw on the counter. "So what brings you here? Little bitty Darrowby...nobody comes here."  
  
"Evidently you did."  
  
"Well, you're right there. See, I was an exchange student my last year in high school. By the time the school year ended, I had a job with a band. By the time the band broke up, I was married to the gal whose dad used to own this pub--that was before he retired and sold it to me. So that's how Martin Ledbetter--but everybody calls me Mac--from Athens, Alabama ended up in the middle of Yorkshire, England. Your turn," he said, drying some glasses.  
  
Harry couldn't help but grin. Mac evidently didn't like anyone to stay a stranger for long--besides, it was a slow night. "Well, I married my high school sweetheart. We were happy for a few years--but then we both got too involved with our jobs. She was a teacher at our old school, I was a coach. One night I went out with the team after we won an important game, and I didn't call to tell her where I was. We'd been fighting a lot...when I came home, she completely blew up at me. I responded in kind...after we'd shouted ourselves hoarse, I put some clothes in my pack and I...left. That was two and a half years ago."  
  
Mac shook his head a little disapprovingly. "Should've called. 'Nother thing I think you both need to work on...work *never* comes first."  
  
Harry snorted. "It's kind of a moot point now."  
  
"Is it? You don't look like it is. You still love her, don't you?"  
  
"More than ever." Harry started to cry.  
  
"So why don't you go back?"  
  
"It's been so long...."  
  
"And you're too proud and stubborn." Harry was speechless. "Stung, didn't it? But what else could keep you on the road this long when you miss her? And you know what? I bet she misses you too."  
  
"I...."  
  
"Look, I can see in your eyes how you feel. And I just kind of wonder if maybe she doesn't still feel the same way."  
  
Harry's stomach quivered. Mudie had said the same thing, sort of. "So why don't you ask her? Ye might be more welcome than ye think."  
  
"Um...."  
  
"Look, it's late. You probably need a room, right?"  
  
"Yeah," Harry said as he drained his soda.  
  
"Okay. Three pounds sterling."  
  
Harry put the money on the counter. "My wife'll show you to your room. Anne!" Mac's wife, a sturdy-looking and quite pregnant blonde, came into the room. "This gentleman needs a room. And stranger?"  
  
"Yes?" Harry turned.  
  
"Don't you forget what I said."  
  
"I won't." Harry smiled faintly.  
  
Mac winked. "Have a good night."  
  
There you are with your hair all down  
  
And your feet are bare in your cotton gown  
  
What a beautiful sight  
  
In the moonlight  
  
The way you're lookin' at me with your loving eyes  
  
You're letting me know that for all my life  
  
You will always be my only girl  
  
But that's another place and time  
  
Back when you were mine  
  
In another world  
  
Harry woke up from the dream again. Mac sounded mighty confident. But could he possibly be right? *I only wish.*  
  
In another world  
  
Then again...could it hurt? Maybe Hermione *did* miss him, after all. Maybe...just maybe...in the morning he'd head back to the world his heart still lived in....  
  
In another world.... 


	3. If That's What It Takes

If That's What It Takes  
  
--by Egon Starcollector  
  
Disclaimer: Harry Potter, Hermione Granger (Potter), etc. are the property of J.K. Rowling. "If That's What It Takes" lyrics copyright Jon Bongiovi and Richie Sambora.  
  
A/N: Special thanks to my friend Wendy who found the song for me.  
  
Hermione sat at home on the couch, her feet propped up on a stool. It had been a rough term at Hogwarts (a couple of Slytherins had caused more trouble than usual), and she was glad to be done with it. She read the new 'Magical Homemaking Monthly' and sipped a cup of peppermint tea.  
  
Suddenly, the doorbell rang. "Who in the world...?" she said aloud. She'd never encouraged many visitors. Well, perhaps it was Ginny Weasley- Longbottom; she'd said she might stop by during the holidays before Neville came home on leave.  
  
Hermione opened the door--and nearly fainted. "Hi," said Harry Potter.  
  
"Wha--wha...?"  
  
"I got tired of missing you."  
  
I played the part of a broken heart upon a shelf  
  
I played that part so lonely and so well  
  
Thought that love belonged to someone else,  
  
Not me and you  
  
She recovered herself, glancing at the calendar as she caught her breath. It was exactly the third anniversary of the night he'd stormed out. *I thought he'd never be back,* she thought. She wanted to jump into his arms and kiss him until she bruised his lips. *After the way he acted?* her pride spoke up.  
  
She folded her arms and gazed at him coolly. "Perhaps you should've thought of that earlier." *Oh no! Did I really just say that?*  
  
He winced. "I know...but after all we've been through together...I thought maybe I'd beg for another chance."  
  
Harry studied her. He couldn't read her face; she'd always been very good at hiding what she was thinking. *She's furious. Can't say as I blame her.... Have I made a bigger prat of myself coming back than I did leaving? Oh 'Mione....* He didn't recognize her dress, but he loved the color (silver-blue) and the way it swept softly over her body. He could almost taste her kiss...he wanted to kiss her more than he wanted to breathe.  
  
Yeah, I know that you've been shattered,  
  
You been bruised  
  
We both know what it feels like when you lose  
  
But I'd bet my life on a roll of the dice for you  
  
"You don't seem to be begging very hard."  
  
"'Mione...I know I hurt you, and I'm sorry. I was so wrapped up in how well my team was doing, I didn't realize I was losing the best prize Fate ever gave me: you." *Think, Harry, think. Say _something_ right.* "I miss you. I want to come home...and be your husband again."  
  
If that's what it takes, that's what I'd do  
  
Tonite's the night, I'm gonna prove it to you  
  
Do I have to break down, baby just to break through  
  
If that's what it takes, that's what I'd do  
  
If that's what it takes....  
  
Oh, *why* did he have to call her 'Mione? She always went weak in the knees when he did that. "So just like that, you think everything will be all right?" *Hermione! Stop being so vindictive!*  
  
"'Mione, please!" He teetered, and for a second Hermione thought he was going to fall over. Then he crumpled, right before her eyes. When he looked up again, tears were streaming out under his glasses.  
  
*Oh, now why did he have to cry?*  
  
I bet you counted all the tears I bet you've cried  
  
I bet you swore you'd never let love back inside  
  
'Cause it hurt you way too bad to say good-bye  
  
"Please, Hermione. I know I can't make up the time we've lost. I wouldn't blame you if you could never forgive me...but I just want another chance." Harry was literally begging on his knees by now. If she didn't forgive him, or say that she still loved him.... He didn't want to think about the alternative.  
  
Now, there'll be times when I might put us to the test  
  
And it's hard for broken hearts to just forget  
  
But I'm driving blind, I'll lay it all on the line for you  
  
He started babbling. "I'll do anything I have to do. I'll wait on you hand and foot. I'll never look at a Quidditch book again in my life. I'll do ANYTHING. Whatever you've ever dreamed of finding in a husband, just tell me and I will do everything within my power to be exactly that." *I don't care how desperate, how pathetic I sound. I want her back.*  
  
If that's what it takes, that's what I'd do  
  
Tonite's the night, I'm gonna prove it to you  
  
Do I have to break down, baby just to break through  
  
If that's what it takes, that's what I'd do  
  
If that's what it takes....  
  
Hermione thought she was hearing things. "You want me back so badly you'd give up Quidditch?"  
  
He nodded. "If that was what you wanted me to do."  
  
Hermione's pride dissolved like sugar in hot water. She knelt down so they were face-to-face again. "I'd never ask you to give up Quidditch." She leaned in and pressed her lips to his. "You were all I ever wanted in a husband. Just you."  
  
So, when you feel like jumping,  
  
Just when your heart starts pumping  
  
When you're standing out on that ledge--staring over the edge  
  
I'll be there to talk you down, I'll be there before you hit the ground  
  
Now Harry was the one nearly fainting. She still loved him! He kissed her back, thanking God, fate, and whoever or whatever else looked out for gits like him. "Hermione, I swear this, though: I will never, EVER leave you again. Not as long as I have breath in my body."  
  
"I love you too, you stubborn fool." She smiled at him, and he felt like he was soaring on his broom.  
  
If that's what it takes, that's what I'd do  
  
Tonite's the night, I'm gonna prove it to you  
  
Do I have to break down, baby just to break through  
  
If that's what it takes, that's what I'd do  
  
If that's what it takes....  
  
Hermione collapsed into his arms. They held each other and cried, still kneeling on the front step. She'd missed him so badly...she inhaled deeply, drinking in his comforting scent.  
  
If that's what it takes, that's what I'd do  
  
If we take the time to do it right, I know we'll pull through  
  
If it took all my life, I'd prove it to you  
  
If that's what it takes, that's what I'd do  
  
If that's what it takes....  
  
He smiled down at her, kissing her forehead. "Thank you...I know I don't deserve a second chance. But I never stopped loving you...I had to hope you never stopped loving me."  
  
"Not for a heartbeat." They kissed again.  
  
"I still think we can make it."  
  
"I know we can."  
  
"I love you, 'Mione."  
  
"I love you too, Harry Potter." 


End file.
